Phase / Stage Gate Process Concepts

A phase/stage-gate process provides top-level management control over projects to assure that the organization continues to invest in the most worthwhile projects and effectively manages risks. For more information on a phase/stage-gate process and gate reviews, see the white paper on Effective Gate Reviews. The concept of a phase/stage-gate process is to divide a project into logical phases with a gate review conducted before proceeding to the next project phase. The gate review is for management to review the project to determine that it still warrants investment relative to the risk of the project.

The outcome of the gate review is to approve moving forward to the next phase of the project, to kill or cancel the project, or put the project on hold (because of other higher priority projects).

We offer consulting to help an organization put in place an effective gate review process and tools to support this process. PD-Trak software includes tools to support the following:

Define the project and the related product(s) and easily assemble a gate review package of documents or allow online inspection of project information

Develop a business case for the project

Use a scorecard with company-configurable criteria for gatekeepers to evaluate the project at a gate review